Begin Again
by ToxicWednesday
Summary: Surely you'd think that falling into a relationship with Tommy Oliver would be smooth sailing for Kimberly Hart. Wrong. Things didn't go exactly according to plan after the green ranger rejoined the team.
1. Chapter 1

The park has always been my second home, a place where I can unwind underneath the shade of an oak tree— much like I'm doing now. I typically bolt right to the gym after school, but I felt a pull to outdoors today. Everyone is at Ernie's chatting away about the Sadie Hawkins dance. I can't pretend to sit there and be excited about this. How many stupid dances can a school have in one semester?

It's been a long day and I really needed this. I can feel the pulse of my heartbeat on my numbing lips as I hum along with my guitar. This is my escape. The only way that I can get away from the world and just be me. I don't have to push myself to be the best at it, I can just... be. My fingers dance on the fretboard of the guitar that I've had since I was seven, and for one short moment the world disappears. It's just me and Melody. Perfect name for a guitar, don't you think?

I know her so well that I don't even have to watch my fingers anymore. The smooth maple grains of her body brings me back to when life was simple. When I didn't have to pretend that my life wasn't a complete mess... back to when my family wasn't a complete mess.

My parents divorce finalization hit me harder than I thought it would. I thought that after a year I would be over it or at least used to the idea that my parents weren't going to be together anymore, but I guess I always had some sort of hope that they would reconcile. Pretty dumb now that I think about it since they're both seeing other people now. Is it bad that I'm not happy for them? I mean, I _know_ I should be. Pascal and Isabella are great, but I can't help but feel that they kept my family broken. I guess I shouldn't feel that way... I know I shouldn't feel that way. I suppose I'm slightly bitter that I don't see my dad as much as I'd like to. He really makes an effort to see me, but going from seeing him every single day to maybe once a week has been tough. I miss him... I miss my family. I don't miss the yelling. They're better off without each other, I know that, but I guess I miss the illusion that I once had a whole family and not two halves. That's selfish of me. All of this relationship drama between my parents has trickled down to me.

Things haven't really turned out how I thought they would after Tommy rejoined the team. I honestly thought we would quickly fall into a relationship, but I guess fate had other plans.

We had a blast at the dance a few weeks ago, and that kiss we shared a few days before that felt right. I mean, I talked Trini's ear out that night. I don't think I let her go to bed until way past midnight. Anyway, like I said, I really like Tommy, and the day couldn't have gone any better. Rita actually gave us a break for once, but all of it changed after I got home. I found the final paperwork for my parents divorce on the kitchen table. My dad had signed it and now so had my mom. It all seemed so real all of a sudden, maybe because it was. I didn't see Tommy until the following Monday at school. He was waiting for me by my locker with the biggest smile that day. My heart hurts a little just thinking about how I walked right past him and into Ms. Appleby's class. He was caught off guard and I'm sorry for that. I shouldn't have done it, he doesn't deserve that.

My mom keeps asking me why Tommy hasn't been around recently. He's been busy with football practice, at least that's what I've been telling her, but the truth is that I'm scared. Tommy and I have a great friendship and I don't want to risk ruining that. What if we don't work out and we turn into my parents? I don't want that.

I know my mom suspects something's wrong between us. She keeps trying to explain love to me. I always sit down and pretend to listen, but deep down I'm rolling my eyes. What does she know about love? She was supposed to set an example, show me what true love really is, but both my parents did a terrible job at it. How am I supposed to believe in that when they've failed to do so themselves. Besides, I'm not in love with Tommy. I like him a lot, but it hasn't gone further than that. I think I'm partially to blame— okay, mostly to blame.

He's tried to reach out, I know he has, but I just can't face him. It's hard thinking about him—

"—You sound great."

My eyes spring open to the sound of his voice. Speak of the Devil.

Keeping my distance has become increasingly more difficult with him getting more and more gorgeous by the day. I mean, how dare he walk the halls looking like he does? Although Tommy is a quiet guy, he walks with so much confidence that it's hard to believe he is actually very shy. I gaze over to his athletic frame as he leans against the trunk of the tree beside me, green backpack hanging off one shoulder.

Green really is his color. His bronze tan accentuates every curve of his muscular arms, his slick ponytail keeps his mane tame and out of the way, and his long lashes leave me nearly hypnotized. Plus, I'm a total softie for guys with an undercut and— oh my god, am I biting my lip? Stop that!

"Thank you." I'm staring at him a lot longer than I intended, but this is the first time in a while that I've actually allowed myself to take a good look.

He's doing the same. His soft eyes meeting mine for the briefest of moments before we're both distracted by a herd of football loving Neanderthals hollering at him. His new teammates, of course.

He waves politely at them, ignoring the moronic kisses they're throwing our way.

"Sorry about that," he grimaces, his left hand rubbing the back of his neck.

I nod before brushing some grass off my jeans and gently rest my guitar at the base of the tree beside me. He takes the open spot next to me, planting his back right up against the tree like I did.

There's so much he wants to say. I can feel it in my bones. We let a few heartbeats go by before he asks, "So where have you been hiding?"

"Hiding?"

"Yeah," he gives me that smile that I always melt over, "I feel like I haven't really seen you around."

I nod again, but don't give him anything else for a response. I can't really say that I've been purposefully avoiding him.

"So," he clears his throat, "Have you heard about the dance tomorrow?"

My dead hamster has heard of the dance.

"It's the talk of the school," I tell him. "Kind of hard to not hear about it."

"Yeah, I guess that's true," he chuckles nervously. "Are you going?"

Under normal circumstances I would have asked Tommy to be my date on day one, but with everything going on with my parents I haven't been feeling up to much.

"I'm not sure yet," I shrug. "You?"

"Well, Lisa from homeroom asked me to go with her..."

Lisa? The amazonian! Wow, why does it feel like I just got the wind knocked out of me? I know Tommy isn't going to sit around for me to get over this _thing_ — in fact, Tommy and I aren't officially anything right now and he's welcomed to date whoever he wants, but why does it have to be with her?

He's still talking to me, but I hear no sound. Nothing except for my heart breaking into millions of shards. Geez, dramatic much? And the Oscar goes to...

"Oh, sounds like fun," I add flatly before I even let him finish talking.

I hope she gets a zit.

"I haven't said yes," he adds, his voice soft.

I wave my hand at him dismissively, "You don't have to explain yourself to me."

He doesn't respond right away and I'm not sure if it's because I'm right.

"Well, I just thought that we had so much fun at the last dance that maybe you'd like to go with me."

There's a hint of hope behind his voice and it didn't go unnoticed by me. I know what he wants, but I'm not ready to give it to him yet. I know I should be honest and it would probably be less painful for the both of us, but I'm not thinking straight right now. All I know is that today is about to get more complicated.

"Isn't this girls ask guys?"

His mouth opens a couple of times. I think he's almost speechless because I've never said anything as snotty as this. "Yeah, I— are you alright?" He pauses for a moment, correcting himself, "I mean, are we okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine," I nod

I've never seen him look this confused before.

"Are you sure because it sounds like you're upset with me or something and I can't quite figure out what I did wrong."

Doesn't that sound familiar? I think I may have said the same thing to him when he was under Rita's spell.

"You didn't do anything, Tommy," I take a deep breath, knowing that the next couple of words are going to be ones I regret. "Look, I... this _thing_ between us. I just don't think it's a good idea, okay? You go to that dance with Lisa and have a great time. I don't need you to worry about me or whatever you _think_ that we had."

 _Crap_. That came out a lot worse than I meant it to. I honestly can't believe I said that. If there was ever a time that I wanted to turn invisible, this was it. I didn't even look at him during my dumbass speech, but now that I'm awaiting his reaction I can't help but look at him.

He's fiddling with a rip in his jeans. Most likely contemplating why he even came to see me in the first place. His gaze is off into the horizon, purposefully avoiding me.

It didn't take much longer before he was off the ground and on his feet, his backpack once again hanging off one shoulder.

"Right," He gulps as he finally faces me and I'm left saddened by the hurt in his eyes. "See ya."

My legs somehow find the strength to stand and I'm calling out to him before I can even think of what to say. All I know is that I don't want him to leave. "Tommy wait."

He pauses, but doesn't turn around to face me. I honesty don't blame him. He's hurt, I get it. I don't think I would want to look at me.

I know I need to open up to him. This is it. It's sink or swim from now on.

And I have about 2 seconds to start talking before I chicken out of this, "I—"

And just like fate would have it the devils ringtone came in the sound of a six beep chime from the communicator.

I can hear him sigh as hard as I did, his head dropped before he turns on his heels to face me.

Our eyes meet and we leave so much left unspoken lingering between us.

"Go ahead, Zordon," he sighs into the communicator.

This is a conversation that's going to have to wait.

* * *

 **Author Note** : Whoa, hey there! Its been a while, hasn't it? I'm sorry for the lack of updates but I'm back now! I never intended to be gone for as long as I did, but life happens. Anyway, this is a short three part story that I wrote to ease myself back into writing. I'm sorry if its not my best, but it's a lot harder to get back into the groove of things than it looks. The next chapter of Protectors of the Right is coming very soon. Thank you to everyone that kept sending me messages wanting me to return. Also, be on the lookout for the next two parts of this short story. I hope you guys enjoy this new story/chapter and be sure to let me know what you guys think in the review section or in a PM. I always love reading what you guys think. See you soon!


	2. Chapter 2

" _Thank you for being a friend_

 _Traveled down the road and back again_

 _Your heart is true_

 _you're a pal and a confidant..._ "

Just another Saturday night in with the Golden Girls and my two favorite boys, Ben & Jerry. As I sing along with one of my favorite televisions shows I start to wonder if I'm doomed to have the same fate as those wonderful ladies. I guess it isn't too bad. I can honestly see myself being at the ripe old age of 60 with no one by my side besides Trini. We could live in a beautiful summer home and have it just be the two of us. No boys to ever make things complicated... yup, no one to talk to besides each other and— okay, this is getting depressing.

I shrug as I dip my spoon back into the tub of chocolate fudge ice cream and I'm startled by the fact that I've hit the bottom. What, already? Psh, four servings my ass. I think I'm going to write a strongly worded letter to this company. No way I paid so much for this ripoff.

Ugh, look at me. I'm over here complaining about going through my second tub of ice cream while I sit in my dirty old robe watching reruns of the Golden Girls. My hair is a complete mess and I can see my cats multiplying by the second. I should just start writing my obituary now:

 _Kimberly Hart— lived alone, died alone._

 _I guess she's missed by her cats_.

You know, although this may look pretty sad, I'm not entirely all that pathetic. Saturday nights are a staple in the Hart household. Okay, just in my bedroom. Trini _always_ comes over with some sort of snack and we spend the night discussing the latest gossip roaming around the halls of Angel Grove High. But, you see, I don't really think that's going to be happening anymore. Trini actually has a date— and I mean a real, _real_ date with Jason. They're at the dance right now and I wouldn't be surprised if she was using this opportunity as practice for the wedding because she has it bad. I'm happy for her and Jason.

I know she's had a thing for him ever since he squirted Paul Tillman in the crotch with water after he found out that Paul was the one putting glue on Trini's chair in the third grade. The whole school still calls him Pee-Pee Paul. That's the kind of name that follows you for life. Anyway, this is their first official date and well, I can just see myself seeing a lot less of Trini. I'm happy that she's at least in the arms of a good guy and not sitting around watching syndicated tv with her hands going back and forth between a bag of chips and a box of powdered donuts. Trust me when I say that it wasn't her best look.

I can still hear how happy she was earlier today. She was so giddy that she almost didn't mind the ongoing battles we've had with Rita. Nothing could get her off cloud 9. It's not just her though, Jason's excited too. He was doing that weird rubbing of his hands that guys do when they're nervous— you know, the one where they look like little flies about to pounce on their feast, but not too eagerly like they're some evil villain hellbent the on taking over the world or anything. I feel like I'm rambling.

Anyway, she likes him, he likes her, yada yada yada— I'll send them a toaster.

My eyes wander off to the clock sitting on my nightstand. _6:17pm_... Yup, they should be at the dance. They aren't the only couple at the dance though. Zack took some new girl he's trying to woo named Angela. Poor girl doesn't know what's coming to her, and Billy took some mystery date... but they aren't the ones I'm referring to. Tommy should be there with his leggy Amazonian. God, Lisa is drop dead gorgeous. Just imagine a Cindy Crawford lookalike strutting down the halls of Angel Grove High— that's her.

I think you can see why I'm a _little_ threatened. It also doesn't help that I basically pushed him into accepting her date. Plus, he didn't even say a word to me after we were done battling Rita's goons yesterday afternoon. He made a quick remark about seeing everyone later and teleported out in a flash of green. It's really no ones fault but my own. He actually had the guts to ask me out again and I returned what was probably the snobbiest thing I've ever said to him. I'm surprised he didn't accidentally have the Dragon Zord squish me like a bug.

So he's there, probably with his arms wrapped around 'longlegs' Lisa... slow dancing the night away in a tux that fits him just right.

Tommy and I have a messy history. Things aren't easy and I almost feel like if things were meant to be then they would be. First of all, he's not the type of guy I would typically go for. I've always been drawn to that typical Zack Morris pretty boy type. Tommy is more... Johnny Depp mysterious. That unconventionally attractive that you're curiously captivated by.

I can almost hear Trini's voice saying, "you like him because he's a bad boy."

Was. He _was_ a bad boy. Evil green ranger has come and gone. I do have to admit that it would have been pretty attractive had my life not been in imminent danger. Okay, I've never been around a bad boy, so sue me. Now he's this slightly reclusive guy that has an untold story that's bursting to be heard and of course I want to be the one to listen.

My head is so far off into the clouds that I don't hear my mom open the door and throw a tiny box onto my bed.

"Oh," I'm startled when I see fluffy, my white persian cat, run out of my room.

I turn around and find my mom with the biggest smile peeking into my bedroom. She's pointing to a velvet box beside me and I'm left confused.

"What's this?" I ask.

What on earth did I do to deserve this? Well, besides save it countless times, but she doesn't know that— or does she?

Okay, I'm panicking.

"Open it," She says, eagerly ushering me to open the box.

I don't even have to open it before I know what it is. It's diamonds because... hello, I'm a girl and I could smell it a mile away. My eyes flicker like never before at the sight of the two dangling diamond earrings. Ever since I could remember I have sneaked into my moms jewelry box and taken them out of their beautiful little box. Hell— I purposefully let Trini's cousin pierce my ears so I could try these on. I know, not my brightest idea. Even Zack and Jason tried to talk me out of it, but I wanted to hear nothing of it. When I say infected, I mean puss oozing inferno like no other, but I still don't know why she's giving this to me.

"Surprise! I'm letting you borrow them."

Okay, _borrow_. Whatever. They're still so beautiful and Oh God... borrow? Earrings this beautiful must be reserved for some extravagant evening. Has Luke Perry finally read my fan mail and is asking for my hand in marriage, because... yes!

"For what?" I ask.

She smiles and I finally notice why everyone thinks we look so similar, "For the dance, silly. I'm sure Tommy will love these as much as you do."

"Oh," my voice drops as does my smile, "How do you know about that?"

The edge of the bed sinks as she comes to sit beside me. "I just ran into Trini's mom at the market. I guess she's got a big date with Jason. I always knew those two would get together."

"Yeah," I nod. I'm really happy for them but for some reason I can't seem to get the corners of my lips to curve up.

My mother has always been my fashion icon. Ever since I could remember she has taught me the importance of looking your best. I have actually never seen my mom in an old robe, lazing around the house, and she made sure to instill those values onto me. So when she took one good look at me, she noticed that _something_ wasn't quite right.

"You're not going in _that_ , are you?" She motioned to my heinous outfit.

"No."

I hide behind my hair, creating a silky wall between myself and my mother, and I can feel her soft fingers brushing my fringe out of the way.

"Are you going at all?" Her right hand gently lifts up my chin, causing me to meet her eyes. I suddenly feel younger than I am. My mother tends to do that to me.

After a moments pause, I quietly answer, "No."

My heart hurts just a little as I stare at the black box in my hands. I bid it a silent goodbye and hand it back to my mother where it truly belongs.

"Why? You love going to school dances."

"I'm kind of over it now." I try my best to make it seem believable, but my mother knows me better than anyone. I'm not fooling her.

"Over it?" Her narrow eyes scan me over, trying to analyze what could possibly be wrong.

It won't be long now before she—

"Is Tommy going?"

 _—Bingo_. I called it, didn't I?

I shrug, "Yeah, I think so."

"You think so?" She nodded, taking all of this information in. "Did something happen between you two?"

"What do you mean?"

She calmly stands and begins pacing before me, and my eyes follow her from one side of my room to the other.

Her left hand is on her hip and her right tapping her chin. Oh, God. This is starting to feel like the beginning of an interrogation.

"I mean he used to be here with all your friends eating my food after school. I had to restock the fridge almost three times a week to keep up with that growing boy," she quietly laughs and I smile thinking about those memories. "He sort of stopped hanging around here after you guys went to that dance a couple of weeks ago. Are you guys okay?"

I can feel myself getting more and more impatient by these constant questions. I kind of just want to be left alone.

"Yeah, mom," I scoff, with a little more attitude than she deserves. "I see him at school all the time."

I know she means well and she thinks she's trying to help, but talking about boy trouble with your parents is always awkward. That's why they invented best friends.

"And how about after school?" She counters, "Do you see him then?"

"Are your soap operas over?" I return and I cringe at the sass in my voice.

Her head tilts as she gives me a good hard look, "Excuse me."

My head sinks into my shoulders.

"What has gotten into you? And I want the truth this time."

I don't let another second go by before I begin firing my own set of questions. "Why didn't you tell me that you and dad had finalized the divorce?"

"What?" I could tell she was taken aback by the sharpness in my voice. "That was no secret. You knew that was coming."

"Why do you guys hate each other?"

"W-We don't hate each other."

"Then why'd you get divorced?" I'm shooting questions left and right, and there's no stopping me.

"Because we weren't right for each other." Shes trying to keep up with my questions, but her answers are so generic that I find it hard to believe that there isn't more truth to what she's saying.

"Then why'd you marry him?" I belt out, tears threatening to spill from my eyes that I'm tired of holding in.

I don't think I've ever raised my voice at my mother like this before, and now I feel immense guilt at doing so. I'm now on my feet, feeding off the energy of this heated conversation.

She's staring at me with furrowed brows, her head shaking back and forth.

"Your dad came into my life when we needed each other," she says. "We were good for one another then. We changed as we got older and became different people. People that no longer mixed well."

"Why do you have to look at him like you regret ever being with him in the first place?" I can feel my blood bubbling under my skin, the anger and hurt that has been bothering me now reaching the surface. "You loved him once, you can love him again!"

"Kim... I love someone else now and he does too."

"You're a failure," I belt out. "You're a failure as a mother and a failure as a wife!"

My tears are now spilling down my cheeks and she gives me this look of sympathy that nearly makes me throw up. I take a few backwards steps before turning and bolting to the bench by my window. The fresh air sweeps through my face, giving me the oxygen I desperately need. I use the few feet of distance between my mother and myself to bring my crying down to a few sniffles. I know it takes two to make a relationship work, but it's easy to put this on her when she's the one that's around the most. I know I shouldn't blame her, but I do.

"If you guys can't make it work then how is everyone else supposed to?" I manage to get out quietly. "How am I suppose to?"

My mother is staying relatively calm during this. I think she understands what it's like being an emotional teen, but that still doesn't excuse my actions or my words.

"You're not us," she says as she takes an open spot beside me. "Is this what this is all about? Are you afraid of ending up like us?"

Yes. I admired my parents and their ability to maintain a loving relationship. I just don't see how you could be in love one day and out of love the next. I refuse to believe that two people that always seemed so meant to be could just grow apart. If it happens to the two people that I thought had the strongest bond, then what's to say that it can't happen to me?

The silence between us grows as I think back to what I just said. Although I may not be happy at what happened, there's absolutely no reason for me to behave the way I did. Hurting the ones you care about is never the answer. I learned that with Tommy and I just experienced it again with my mother.

I take her hands in mine. I know she's not upset with me and that my words were from an act of passion, but I still feel incredibly guilty.

"I'm sorry," I tell her with the most sincerity I can find. "I didn't mean that."

"I know," she smiles lightly, "I've said the same to my mother."

I don't respond aside from the quite sniffles I'm trying to repress.

"Oh, Honey," she says, patting the back of my head. "Don't be afraid of using your heart. Don't push people away because you're scared of the unknown. That's how you'll end up like me. Take a chance."

I'm shaking my head as I get on my feet. I know what's she's saying makes sense, and maybe I can use this information in the future, but I just wish I knew this earlier this week before I made a mess of things with Tommy. I can see my mom watching me intently from the bench out of the corner of my eye. I have a million and one thoughts running through my head right now, but one keeps popping up more than the others.

 _Him_.

And how badly I screwed that up.

"It's too late for me," I say, as I look back at her over my shoulder.

"Too late," she scoffs. "Kim, you're sixteen."

Maybe so... but it hurts the same whether you're 16 or 60.

I'm chewing on my bottom lip, this time more to keep my chin from trembling than anything else. "I messed up real bad, mom."

"How?"

"Tommy's going with another girl to the dance," I whisper, my voice a breath away from cracking. "I pushed him to it."

She doesn't immediately response. Maybe because she agrees with me that I messed up majorly. I'm fighting with myself to not cry again because I've done enough of that for the day. There are some stray tears that have committed treason, but those were quickly wiped away with my sleeve.

Marking the first real mother/daughter moment that we've shared since she started dating Pascal, my mother came to me and wrapped her arms around me. Just giving me exactly what I needed. A simple hug that somehow made things all better and gave me a sense of relief.

"Tommy cares about you. I've seen the way he looks at you. A dance with some girl isn't going to change that. Why don't you give him a call?"

My head drops just a little, "He's probably at the dance by now."

And I honestly don't want to know that he's out having a good time with someone else. It scares me that I messed up that bad.

"It doesn't hurt to try," she says before picking up the phone from the base and handing it to me.

I always knew my mom could give good advice, but I didn't know she could give life changing advice. I almost feel like a new person after our little chat. She winks at me as she walks over to the door, leaving me staring at the white phone in my hands.

"By the way," she calls out to me from the doorway, "I don't regret marrying your father. After all, he gave me the most wonderful gift in the world."

I'm clutching the phone to my chest, my head slightly tilted. "What's that?"

She smiles at me one last time, carefully sliding the black velvet box onto my nightstand before finally saying, "You."

* * *

 **Author Note** : Hey there! I hope you guys enjoyed this next chapter. I have one more to go until this mini fic is complete. This was just my way of getting the writing juices flowing after such a long hiatus. Let me know what you guys think in the review section or send me a PM. I always love reading what you guys think. Next chapter for Protectors of the Right should be up soon!


	3. Chapter 3

Okay, teleporting into Tommy's room might have been an abrupt decision made on complete impulse, but if I didn't get my ass over here then I would have chickened out. It wasn't the smartest idea, but it isn't the dumbest I ever had. Do I need to remind you about the lesson I just learned?

After my mother and I finished our little conversation, I thought the best way that Tommy and I could get closure was to meet face to face and talk it out like two mature— teens. A phone call was too impersonal and other than snail mail I was out of options. No, this was something I _had_ to do in person. So after hearing the low flatline of the phone on my end I decided to hang up and teleport inside Tommy's house. His room. _Yikes._ He should be at the dance anyway. Which gives me just enough time to think of what I'm going to say.

Is it weird that I've never been inside Tommy's bedroom? I'm standing in the corner of his room, beige shag carpet lining the floor from wall to wall. The moonlight peeking in his room makes it difficult to see colors clearly, but as far as I can tell it is a pretty neutral pallet aside from a few green accents. The shadows nearly consume all of the bedroom and I'm able to make out a dresser and a chair off on the other side of the room. The large posters on his wall of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Lee almost make me take a few steps back. That's a lot of muscle.

I tilt my head as I ponder if this is typical in a guy's room. I never really thought guys would have posters of guys on the wall. Tommy has me beat. The only pictures of guys on my wall is my lone poster of the New Kids on the Block. _Interesting..._

"Kim?"

Oh, crap. I'm not alone after all. What the hell... I swear he wasn't here two seconds ago.

I turn on my heel until I see a confused tommy emerging from the shadows staring back at me. I don't know what to say. He wasn't supposed to be here.

"Hi," I say, my face completely horrified. "What are you doing here?"

"I live here," he answers simply. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Right," I nod. _Duh_. "I was in the neighborhood?"

Okay, this didn't exactly go how I planned. I was too consumed with the bulging muscles on Tommy's wall that I didn't even give myself time to come up with what I was going to say. Not only that, but it wasn't until this very moment that I realized I never took my bathrobe off. I guess I'm going to have this conversation with Tommy with ratty hair, my pink bathrobe, and some Cheeto residue on my fingers. I don't think I've ever been so unattractive in my life.

I'm skimming him over quickly, feeling myself become self conscious at my choice in wardrobe. He isn't dressed to go to the dance, but he surely isn't dressed to stay home. His tight green muscle shirt and tan cargo shorts match his decor, and the shoes in his hand imply that I caught him in the middle of leaving. There's a damp towel draped over his shoulder, his usually straight hair is curling from the moisture, and there's a crisp hint of men's body wash dancing in the air. I'm guessing he just got out of the shower, and it's taking everything in me to keep my knees from quaking at the sight of his muscles.

"You heading out?"

"Yeah," he nods, holding up the pair of white Nike's and tossing the old towel in a heap onto the floor. "Zack's been mentioning that his zord has been making a weird noise so I'm gonna go check it out and see what I can do."

"Oh, nice," I gulp, but it does nothing to quench my thirst. This is a failed mission. Abort. After a moments pause, I continue, "Okay, well I'll let you get to it."

My hand is making its way to my wrist so I could teleport myself into an active volcano when I see a blur of Tommy making his way towards me.

"Kim," he says softly. He's giving me a quick glance before his eyes met mine. A questioning glare followed a heavy sigh, "Why are you really here because I find it hard to believe that the Kimberly Hart that I know would be walking around the neighborhood in a pink bathrobe... and bunny slippers."

 _Whhaaatt!_ I'm nearly shaking as I glance down to my feet, meeting two pairs of floppy ears bouncing their little heart away.

"But I don't know," he continues, shrugging, "I'm not very fashion forward. Maybe they're all the rage."

Oh my god, can I just die now? _très embarrassant._

"I— I'm sorry," I stutter, I'm nearly speechless. "I didn't think you would be here."

Towering before me, he crosses his arms, "Where else would I be?"

"At the dance," I answer simply.

"The dance?" He repeats, shaking his head. "Why would I be at the dance?"

I'm left shrugging because I'm hating this quick back and forth. The last couple of days is the most we've spoken in weeks. I know he knows why I thought he wasn't going to be home, but there's a part of me that doesn't want to say that he had a date. "Because everyone else was going to be there?" I try.

"You weren't." He's quick to reply, almost like he's been anticipating this moment for a while.

I still don't want say what's on the tip of my tongue, but he's baiting me and I'm his easy prey.

 _Screw it_.

"Yeah, well I wasn't the one that was asked out by Lisa," I reply bitterly and I hide the fact that I can see him smiling at the tone in my voice.

He knows I'm jealous, I'm not blind. I'm not exactly hiding that fact either, but I'm really enjoying that he likes that I'm being possessive.

"I didn't want to go with Lisa or any other girl. I wanted to go with you," he answers softly before he takes my left hand and rubs small circles on the back of it with his thumb. "So why would I go if you weren't going to be there?"

"We should have been there together," I murmur to myself, unsure if he heard me.

He pauses a moment and bravely tilts my chin up with his hand, hypnotizing me when our soft eyes meet. "Yeah, we should have."

Too much too fast. There were things I had to get out in the open first. Tommy has this ability to turn me into a pile of goo that no other guy has, and if I don't start talking now then I probably never will and nothing will be solved.

I regretfully pull away from him, and the loss of contact is immediately missed, but I forge on.

"Tommy, I'm sorry about how I've been acting the last couple of weeks... especially the other day at the park," I say as sincerely as I possibly can. "I've been a jerk."

He's quiet, patiently waiting for me to say my piece, and I'm grateful for the opportunity. I'm fiddling with my hands more than I should, but I'm so nervous that I have to toy with something to keep my anxiety at bay.

A few shaky breaths escape me as I work up the courage to continue. "Um, my parents are officially divorced and I guess it hit me harder than I thought it was going to. I've sort of been taking it out on you and you didn't deserve that. I'm just... I'm really, really sorry."

There I said it. He knows why I was being such a jerk, but that still doesn't excuse my actions, nothing does. And I don't expect him to forgive me just like that. I've done some real damage to our friendship and I expect to earn my way back into this sense of normalcy with him. Things can't just go from being bad one minute to being okay the next.

The silence continues as I watch him out of the corner of my eye. He moved to his window, taking in the spring breeze. Maybe he's thinking of what to say. I know that forming a response to something like this is just as hard as me having to say it.

He creates an eclipse in his bedroom, blocking out the moonlight when he turn to face me, the light reflecting behind him gives him an angelic glow.

"I'm sorry about your parents," he sighs quietly. "I didn't know."

The sincerity in his voice isn't tainted by the betrayal I'm sure he's feeling. He's too kind sometimes, and I get why it was so easy for me to fall for him. What my parents went through and the dumb mistakes I made were lessons I needed to learn the hard way.

"It's okay. I get it now."

His hands are buried in his pockets as I feel him shift a million miles away. I think it's harder to understand that I pushed him away for something he didn't do. Because who's to say that I won't shut him out once again without an explanation? I don't want him to live in fear of that.

"So that's why I've been acting strange and pushing you away. Believe me, being away from you has been hell. I don't want to do that again. I'm just really sorry."

It's hard to read his face in such darkness. I don't know if he's still upset with me or if he's actually understanding that I'm truly sorry. The last thing I want is for this thing between us to have unraveled before it even began.

"Please tell me I haven't ruined this... friendship."

"Friendship?" He quirks his brow. "Is that what _this_ is?"

I'm unable to meet him in the eye as I fight to say what I'm really thinking. We've never just been friends. That's not where I see myself with him and that's not where we left things off. The right words are slipping and I'm left straining to grasp them. "I think we're more than that, aren't we?"

"I mean, I thought we were heading somewhere." He quickly rubs his left hand over the back of his neck before bringing it back down to his side.

There's no denying that we're both nervous. This is the conversation we've been avoiding for so long.

"I just... I want you in my life... in whatever way you'll have me."

"What do you want?" He challenges me. "We can be friends if that's what you want, but I can't promise that it's not going to kill me to see you everyday and not be with you."

His revelation has me feeling things I didn't know I could feel. He's taking a chance, the ball's in my court. I've been so afraid that I've ruined things beyond repair that hearing him say that I haven't has my heart leaping like an idiot. I didn't mess things up after all, and he wants this just as badly as I do. How did I get so damn lucky?

"I think I've made my feelings for you pretty clear and—"

I don't even let my brain think myself out of this before I wrap my arm around Tommy's neck and pull him towards me, capturing his soft lips with mine. It takes me no time to realize that I'm the only one in this kiss. I pull back, both completely mortified at my abruptness and his lack of reciprocation.

If he wasn't weirded out by my sudden kiss, then the absolute horrified expression I'm wearing will do the job. My skin turned to a corpse white, my eyes nearly bulged out of their socket, and I'm struggling to form a proper sentence. How do I say "Fuck" in a way that's politically correct? I shouldn't have done that and I'll be kicking myself all night.

My mouth keeps opening and closing as I try to spit out some sort of apology. Tommy isn't making things easier. He's standing completely still, possibly stunned by my sudden boldness. Just before I pray for my slow and painful death, the corner of his mouth suddenly curves up. Subtle but beautiful.

Not even allowing another breath to pass, he cups my left cheek with his right hand and pulls me into a heart melting kiss that leaves my stomach fluttering. I lose myself in his arms as he draws me closer to him. Our lips are molded perfectly together, almost like they were made for one another. This kiss is far from what our first was. Where that one was short and sweet, this one is explorative and passionate, bordering a PG-13 rating that I'm sure my mother wouldn't approve of. My arms intertwine behind his neck for support as I try to gain some height by standing on my toes.

There's a fire behind our kiss, clearly fuel by weeks of unresolved tension and maybe a drop of teenage hormones. Although he wasn't my first kiss, he is definitely my best. We break apart when the need to breathe becomes necessary. We're holding onto each other, our foreheads pressing together as we share a playful smile.

"Does that answer your question?" My breath is soft and labored as I'm coming down from this rush of endorphins.

He nods against me before stealing one last kiss.

My heart is pounding so hard against my chest that it honestly frightens me, but it's hard to not feel like skipping when I'm with him. Our duo smiles consume all the darkness in his room, giving us the perfect opportunity to see each other.

We finally disentangle ourselves from one another and I can't shake the feeling that I've never felt closer to him. The shattered bridge that connected is far from repaired, but there's a safe way across that is slowly getting stronger.

There's so much I know I should say, but I'm suddenly speechless. This wasn't how I planned on things working out— it's way better than expected. I wasn't even sure in the beginning if he would even give me the time of day, but I shouldn't have doubted him.

My mouth is opening and closing as I struggle to believe that what just happened actually happened, and that it wasn't all just a made up story. I just kissed Tommy and he just kissed me back. Like, how? What? How is this my life?

Of course we can never just have a good moment without the universe coming to remind us that we're not normal teenagers.

" _Tommy, this is Alpha, do you copy?"_ We hear coming from the communicator. " _The Mastodon is in the hangar awaiting repair. Are you still coming?_ "

I hear him sigh hard as he presses his eyes closed. We've been so wrapped up in this moment that we both forgot he had plans.

He shoots me an apologetic gaze before answering, "I read you, Alpha. I'll be in the shop soon."

I take a few steps back, giving us some distance to allow us to process our thoughts. Things between us aren't perfect yet, but it's a mend in the tear.

"I guess I better let you go."

"Yeah," he nods regretfully, "but I'll see you tomorrow?"

Tomorrow sounds like a million years away right now and I'm not ready for this night to be over. It's not like I'd be able to sleep or think of _anything_ other than what happened anyway. Sorry _Golden Girls_ , but you're going to have to wait.

"Unless you want some help?"

I've never seen him lift his chin much faster that just now. It was almost like I'd said the words he wanted to hear the most. His eyes are lit, so much glee and hopefulness behind them.

"I-it's not gonna to be a lot of fun."

 _I can think of a thing or two that would make things interesting._

"I can think of a thing or two that would make things interesting." I facepalm myself so hard as the last words fly off my lips. "I didn't mean to say that out loud."

I hear him snicker at my comment and we're both trying to hide the rosy blush creeping up on us.

He one ups me when he gives me a quick once over and I realize that I'm still the same idiot looking completely ridiculous in my robe. He lifts his brow and I can already read what's on the tip of his tongue.

Yes, I'm going to change. The last thing I want while I'm getting all hot and sweaty under the Mastodon is engine oil getting all up on this. I don't even let him ask what he wants before I give him a nod. We leave that there. He knows what I'm trying to say.

"Okay, I'll see you in 10?"

I steal a glance at my wrist and realize that the communicator should have come equipped with a watch. I'm going to have to get Billy on that.

"Yes."

He surprises me one last time by planting a tender kiss to my lips that leaves us both smiling once again. This boy has my heart and he doesn't even know it yet.

I take a few steps back to try and create some distance for me to teleport. His eyes watch me intently, a glimmer of hope for the future behind them. I flutter my full lashes to him before I beam out in a flash of pink, never feeling more content with my life than I feel now.

I'm not sure what will happen between us. I'm sixteen, I have my whole life ahead of me. A life that may or may not have Tommy. The future is full of uncertainties, but I know that thanks to him I'm not afraid to think about what could be.

* * *

 **Author note:** Hey Guys! I hope you guys enjoyed the end to this short story. I intended to finish this a lot sooner, but I got so wrapped up into writing POTR that I put this on the back burner. I hope you guys enjoyed. Be sure to leave me a review or PM to let me know what you guys thought. I got the motivation to finish this after reading issue #25 of Shattered Grid. Guys! GUYS! **GUYS**! The comic books. **WENT**. **THERE**. And I will **NEVER** be okay. Check them out! You will **NOT** be okay either lol.


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